Bruins forward Shawn Thornton made a special kind of assist Monday afternoon, helping a Braintree High hockey player ask his would-be date to this spring's prom.

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The Patriot Ledger reported that Thornton was at the school to deliver a message about the dangers of texting while driving, but the gymnasium erupted in cheers when he suddenly unfurled a banner that read, "ALYSSA PROM -KEV."

Alyssa Willis, a forward for the Braintree High girls hockey team, came down from the bleachers and briefly hugged Kevin Howard, a defenseman for the boys team, before moving to the other end of the banner to pose for a picture next to Thornton.

The crowd erupted in laughter.

Thornton's visit to Braintree High was part of an AT&T campaign aimed at getting teenagers to consider the consequences of using their phones while behind the wheel.

Called "It Can Wait," the program includes a 10-minute documentary about people killed or permanently injured in crashes caused by drivers who had been texting, including the story of a woman tormented by the single-word text her sister sent her moments before crashing into a median.

"Don't be that person," John Dennis, a sports radio host on WEEI, told the students after they watched the video. "If not only for yourself, what about your best friend?"

AT&T sent Dennis and Thornton to Braintree High after the school had more students sign a no-texting-while-driving pledge than any other Massachusetts high school.

Braintree High's varsity boys and girls hockey teams also had a chance to share the ice at TD Banknorth Garden with Thornton a few weeks ago.

It was during that ice time that Howard solicited Thornton's help with his prom invitation.

Thornton told the students Monday that he himself had texted while driving in the past, but said he was making a "conscious effort" to stop and urged them to do the same.

"It could be the end of the world for you and everyone around you," he said.